Overhead camshaft engine

ABSTRACT

An overhead camshaft engine comprises a cylinder head secured to a cylinder block of the engine; a plurality of cam bracket members disposed on the cylinder head to rotatably support a camshaft on the cylinder head; and at least a beam member secured to the cam bracket members to securely connect the cam bracket members with each other, thereby reducing noise emission due to the vibration of the cam bracket members.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to an improvement in overhead camshaft engines, and more particularly to a cylinder head configuration for preventing noise generation from the vicinity of a camshaft.

2. Description of the Prior Art

In connection with overhead camshaft engines, a camshaft is rotatably supported by a plurality of aligned cam brackets which are located on a cylinder head. However, the cam brackets unavoidably vibrate in various directions due to camshaft rotation and charge explosion or combustion. This causes vibration of the cylinder head and a rocker cover installed on the cylinder head, creating high levels of noise therefrom.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, an overhead camshaft engine comprises a cylinder head secured to a cylinder block. A plurality of cam bracket members are disposed on the cylinder head to rotatably support a camshaft on the cylinder head. Additionally, at least a beam member is secured to the cam bracket members to securely connect the cam bracket members with each other. In the thus configurated engine, the cam bracket members can be prevented from various vibrations thereof, thereby effectively reducing noise emission from the engine.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The features and advantages of the engine according to the present invention will be more clearly appreciated from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like reference numerals designate like parts and elements, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross section of a conventional overhead camshaft engine;

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross section of a preferred embodiment of an overhead camshaft engine in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary side view of a cylinder head of the engine of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

To facilitate understanding the present invention, a brief reference will be made to an example of conventional single overhead camshaft engines, depicted in FIG. 1 Referring to FIG. 1, the conventional engine 1 is provided with hemispherical combustion chambers which are higher in thermal efficiency because they are higher in combustion rate and lower in the ratio of surface area/volume. The engine 1 includes a cylinder head 2 which is formed by casting an aluminum alloy or the like. The cylinder head 2 is integrally formed at its top surface with a plurality of bearing sections 3 for a camshaft 4. Additionally, a plurality of cam brackets 5 are secured onto the bearing sections 3, respectively, by means of bolts 6, so that the camshaft 4 is rotatably supported by the thus associated bearing sections 3 and the cam brackets 5. The plurality of bearing sections 3 are connected with each other by means of overhung is side walls 7 in such a manner that the bearing sections 3 are aligned along the axis of the engine 1.

However, the thus arranged conventional engine has encountered the following problems: The cam brackets 5 tend to readily vibrate in fore-and-aft direction or camshaft axial direction, torsional direction etc. by vibrations induced by the rotations of the camshaft 4 and the explosion of a charge in a combustion chamber 9. This excites the cylinder head 2 and a rocker cover 8, thereby emitting high levels of noise. Additionally, the above-mentioned side walls 7 serve to improve the flexural rigidity of the cylinder head 2 in upward-and-downward direction; however, these side walls 7 themselves vibrate to a considerable extent, thus emitting noise therefrom while increasing vibration inducing forces to the rocker cover 8.

In view of the above description of the conventional overhead camshaft engine, reference is now made to FIGS. 2 and 3, wherein a preferred embodiment of a single overhead camshaft engine of the present invention is illustrated by the reference numeral 10. The engine 10 is, in this instance, used for an automotive vehicle and comprises a cyliinder head 12 secured to the top surface of a cylinder block 14. The cylinder head 12 is formed at its top surface with a plurality of bearing sections 16 which are aligned parallel to each other along the axis of the cylinder head 12 as shown in FIG. 3. A plurality of cam bracket members 18 are secured to the bearing sections 16, respectively, by means of bolts 20. Accordingly, each cam bracket member 18 cooperates with each bearing section 16 to form a camshaft bearing B by which a camshaft 22 is rotatably supported. In other words, the camshaft 22 is rotatably supported between the associated cam bracket member 18 and the bearing section 16 of the cylinder head 12. As a result, the camshaft 22 is rotatably supported by a row of cam bracket members 18 associated with a row of bearing sections 16, in such a manner that the camshaft 22 extends along the axis of the cylinder head 12. Each cam bracket member 18 is generally rectangular in cross-section along an imaginary vertical plane to which the axis of the camshaft 22 is perpendicular The two bolts 20 are located separate from each other and in the vicinity of the opposite side surfaces of the cam bracket member 18 so that the camshaft bearing B is positioned between the two bolts 20 which pass through the cam bracket member 18 to reach the bearing section 16.

Two opposite rigid beam members 24A, 24B are secured to the cam bracket members 18 to securely connect them with each other. The beam members 24A, 24B are connected to the upper opposite corners of each cam bracket member 18 so as to be located outside of the bolts 20. Accordingly, the beam members 24A, 24B are located opposite to each other and extend parallel to each other along the axis of the camshaft 22, so that the plurality of cam brackets 18 are securely connected by the beam members 24A, 24B in the fore-and-aft direction. In this instance, the beam members 24A, 24B are formed integrally with the cam bracket members 18 by casting or the like. Alternatively, the beam members 24A, 24B may be formed separately and independently from the cam bracket members 18, and secured together by means of welding, bolts of the like. The reference numerals 28, 30 denote intake and exhaust parts, respectively, which are, as usual, communicable with a combustion chamber 32.

With the thus arranged engine, since the cam bracket members 18 are securely connected with each other, the cam bracket members 18 are suppressed from torsional vibration and so-called comming-down vibration acting in fore-and-aft direction to cause the cam bracket member 18 to come down, due, for example, to the rotation of the camshaft 22. This greatly reduces the vibration and noise of the cylinder head 12 and the rocker cover 26 which vibration and noise are due to the vibration of the cam bracket members 18.

By virtue of the high rigidity beam members 24A, 24B installed at the top section of the cylinder head 12, the cylinder head 12 is greatly improved in the flexural rigidity in the upward-and-downward direction. As a result, it becomes possible to omit tall cylinder head side walls which are usually used in conventional overhead camshaft engines and identified by the reference numeral 7 in FIG. 1. This in turn makes it possible to employ the particular rocker cover installation arrangement in which the rocker cover 26 is directly installed at the cylinder block walls immediately over the intake and exhaust ports 28, 30 these walls are lower in vibration level, thus preventing the transmission of vibration to the rocker cover 26. As a result, even if the rocker cover 26 is formed of pressworked metal sheet which is inferior compared to castings, noise emitted from the rocker cover 26 can be effectively suppressed to a sufficiently low level in practical use, thereby greatly contributing to a lighter weight rocker cover and to lowering the production cost of the rocker cover 26.

As appreciated from the above, in the overhead camshaft engine according to the present invention, a plurality of cam bracket members are securely connected with each other by means of at least a rigid beam member, and therefore cam bracket vibrations are largely suppressed, thereby effectively reducing noise emissions, due to the cam bracket member vibrations, from various parts of the engine. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An overhead camshaft engine having a camshaft, comprising:a cylinder head secured to a cylinder block of the engine; a plurality of cam bracket members disposed on said cylinder head for rotatably supporting the camshaft on said cylinder head; at least one beam member secured to said plurality of cam bracket members for securely connecting said cam bracket members to each other; and a rocker cover, independent of said beam member and secured to said cylinder block to cover said camshaft, said plurality of cam bracket members, and said beam member.
 2. An engine as claimed in claim 1 wherein said engine has intake and exhaust ports and said rocker cover is secured to walls of said cylinder block directly over said intake and exhaust ports.
 3. An engine as claimed in claim 1, wherein said camshaft has an axis and said at least one beam member includes first and second beam members which extend parallel to the axis of the camshaft.
 4. An enigne as claimed in claim 3, wherein a top section of said cylinder head has a plurality of bearing sections formed therein, each of said bearing sections being secured to a cam bracket member to form a camshaft bearing for rotatably receiving the camshaft.
 5. An engine as claimed in claim 4, further comprising first and second bolts associated with each cam bracket for securing said cam bracket members to said bearing sections, said first and second bolts being spaced from each other and passong through said cam bracket members to said bearing sections, said camshaft bearing being disposed between said first and second bolts.
 6. An engine as claimed in claim 5, wherein said first and second beam members are disposed outside of said first and second bolts, respectively with respect to the axis of said camshaft.
 7. An engine as claimed in claim 6, wherein each cam bracket member has generally rectangular cross-section taken along a plane perpendicular to the axis of the camshaft, each of said cam bracket members being formed with upper opposite corners to which said first and second beam members are securely connected.
 8. An engine as claimed in claim 7, wherein said bearing sections of said cylinder head project from the top section surface of said cylinder head and have a generally rectangular cross-section taken along a plane perpendicular to the camshaft axis.
 9. An engine as claimed in claim 8, wherein said first and second beam members are integrally formed with said cam bracket members. 